How is your relationship to the Lord?

We tend to want to compartmentalize our lives, we only have so much time for people, or this activity.  We want to be secular sometimes and Holy at others.  Yet the Lord wants us to be in relationship with Him at all times- there are no lines of distinction or spheres, for us to cling to them is to set ourselves up as lord of our lives rather than the Lord our creator.

Furthermore the Lord teaches us His children through action, not just study.  We often have to live a circumstance in order to drive it home.  The only thing one learns from youtube is possibly how to work a computer better, although much can be seen on youtube.

The Lord wants us to realize His ever presence in our day to day at our vocation, the one we have now and not the great one we dream of Him using us in.  The circumstances of our lives train us in accordance to His will for His purposes.

Further more He gifts us for His purposes, natural talent can be a path away from God when our focus is on the talent and what we see the limits and opportunities as being.  God will equip us for His work.  To sense His leading then not obey because we feel we have not the necessary gift is often done by those who forget that with God all things are possible.

We get caught up in things, rather than relationship to Him.  If He let all our things be taken as He did with His servant Job, would we still serve Him?

Do we seek to know His purpose for our lives or do we do we seek to know Him in all things?  

Are we too focused on self rather than Him?  Are we caught up in the injustices against us (sinners -deserving death) that we need reminding that He wants fellowship with all?

What do you think about or do?

How does one get the mind of God to be what he thinks?  Diligence, study, repetition, immersion into the mind of the Lord.  It cannot be gleaned from another person, it must be taken directly from the Source of Life.  Hearing His Word should be our great desire.

Inevitably and often, things will come out of His Word that we feel we cannot do.  We in fact must because His Word says we must.  His ways aren't hard, the hardness comes from our unwillingness to do things His way, our stubborn stiff necked insistence on our own way. We elevate our reason above His, we make ourselves out to be something we aren't, we seek the comfort of others on our route down the wide path.

We justify our own stubbornness by looking at those we feel are following God even less than we are.  The Standard is to follow the Lord in all things, not just be ahead of the crowd.  There is always growth in Him.

Anything of the Lord that we dismiss as too hard, or convince ourselves it doesn't apply to us, or wasn't meant for us, IS an area of disobedience on our part.  Think on those things, watch for the way you are telling God that He is not, but that you are.  Let Him show you how your way ends in destruction, but His way ends in life.

In first Samuel, Saul didn't fully follow God.  He often times was more worried about what the people thought than God.  He certainly didn't do what He was told, but allowed his own interpretation to cloud his obedience.  We're all like Saul when we cling to our self instead of yielding to His spirit.

What areas of your stubbornness have come to mind?  Yield to His ways.

developing personality

People are by nature self focused, taken to its end, one can become self focused to the point that the only authority they recognize is themselves.  Their reasoning, outlook, etc. becomes their moral compass they recognize no other authority.  They however did not create the world, and while seemingly somethings may be within their grasp of control, certain aspects are clearly not.  In this mind set of knowing we're not in control the Bible becomes truth, it rings true, whereas before we didn't recognize it as having any authority.  As we seek relationship with the Creator, His word becomes alive.

Certain problems come along - God allows- that we cannot answer or solve, apart from Him.  Once we see His answers and become hungry for them we can ask the questions that He may use to draw others to Himself.  We must saturate ourselves with His truth to push out any remnant of our own misguided thinking.

Once we become His, all the aspects of life that we considered important no longer are.  Our clinging to this life ceases.  Others who are not His (yet- with great hope for them to be His) see our disdain for the things they see important, they see the change wrought by our fellowship with Christ, and we will almost certainly be labelled, ostracized, criticized.

Once we get to relationship with Him, why doesn't the Lord take us home to be with Him?  We have to develop our personality in Him.  There is our personality that we develop as we relate to the world and our experiences, this naturally happens in life.  Our personality in Christ is developed by clinging to His ways in all things.  Even to our detriment (from a natural standpoint.  Are we willing to have our natural life poured out by Him for others?  Endure the tragic circumstance by His strength?  When those that aren't His see our lives poured out, then He can possibly have His way with them.  Anyone can speak of what should be, even with great passion, but to live it out with no earthly reward is a stronger message, and our character is developed in Him.

Is your personality developed in every aspect possible in Him?

Fully committed to the Lord?

We are bombarded by distraction and other things in our lives.  We make our own worlds where we escape reality.  Examples:

drugs - legal and illegal
anything sex related where pleasure - without potential consequences of being a parent is the focus 

video games

our own mind- in fantasies and pondering worlds we would create

sports

music

reading

cars, homes
Basically anything related to me, my and I put above others.

As we involve ourselves in these things, we are saying to God that we are god in those areas.  We fail to take Him seriously.  We are saying the world He created for us His creation isn't good enough, and drilled down that means therefore He isn't good enough.  True happiness comes from knowing Him not the things above.  Any of those things above are dead ends without God.  We need to be focused on Him, be in His word and listen for His voice.

We live in our own little world within His world, yet we need to be solely focused on His world.  Our worlds can't long exist in His world.  We must take God seriously and His ways, and not our ways. We cannot take ourselves seriously.

Concentrate fully on God, give yourself to Him.  We have to be His-willed and not self-willed. Let the life of Christ live through you.  The Lord will engineer circumstances where we must make the clear choice between His world or ours.

So where are you?

In 1 Tim 1:12 we are informed that we are given strength from the Lord.  Our primary life task is to know Him and out of that knowledge serve Him as He shows us what to do in all instances.

Our relationship to Him should be ever growing and we should realize through His given strength we won't be weak.  If we pause we are really saying to Him, He is inadequate.  We are putting our focus on our own self rather than Him, we are trying to be god in some area of our life, recognize it and give it back to Him.  "Can't" is really telling our Lord "Won't" or "no".  Other people will sometimes try and manipulate you on this point, make sure your instructions are from your Lord.  If He is your Lord obey.

Being faithful to Him is something He has given us the power to do, it doesn't involve our strength but rather only willingness.  It is His capability to re-make us in His image, and that image which is faithful to Him.  His life in us overcomes ours as we join our lives to His, The relationship grows but the victory of His life over ours happens the instant we submit to His ways in some area.

The Lord has redeemed the world, of that we can be perfectly certain regardless of what we see and hear in the natural.  As His, He reaches out to others sharing the message of redemption and His longing that they too will become His and realize His best for them.

What does the Lord have for you?

The Lord calls us, He chooses us.  Our only choice is to respond to Him or try to run or hide from Him, both futile.  So what has He called you for?  Do you know? then ask.  It can be the start of that development of relationship to Him, hopefully the continuation of one.  Finding out His purpose for us as He guides and directs. 

The Lord is so comprehensive He doesn't have to get you to a certain point, He can start to show you and indeed wants to show you His purpose in creating you.  We only need to seek Him, open ourselves up to the possibility of relationship with Him, be of willing heart.  The Lord longs that none should perish but that all should come to fulfilment in Him.  He won't make us puppets though.

In every circumstance we are His, and also in the immediate present is the time to be in fellowship with Him - "pray without ceasing".  Discount no other soul, no circumstance in being His and letting Him show Himself through you.

There is no need to withhold our strength unless we are going to go our own way apart from Him.  Another futile potential act on our part.  He will impart His strength as He works through us, as we watch and let submitting to Our Maker.

Often we want to be on our time line, we have to be on His.  Things may seemingly not change but adhere to the Lord.  Accept what He shows you, don't try and lead in the speed of growth area either.  Learn to discern His voice, His direction, and obey.

Lose your purpose and agenda, embrace the one He made you for.  Follow His guidance, learn His ways until His ways are your ways walking as Elijah and Enoch did.  You may not understand His ways, deepen in understanding at those points, ask, look for His signs, His voice, not allowing your "sure" self to usurp His position.  He is timeless we are not, He knows the beginning to the end, He is the authority.

Focus on your relationship to Him, you don't have the knowledge of what others must go through in developing their relationships to Him.  Watch for pride, keep you focus proper. Yes pray for them showing your concern to the Lord, longing that He has His way with them as He is having it with you.

How long oh Lord?

In Habakkuk 1:3 the prophet asks the Lord why he has to witness injustice.  To that can be added - oh Lord how long will you let people mock you and your ways.  The guidelines for life that you have given are trampled on evermore in the name of selfish desires.  The people don't realize their actions they have deceived themselves, and deny you oh Lord, it is so hard to endure, so sad that they trample on your ways and yet seek the fulfilment that only comes from knowing You and walking with You.

We Your people haven't spread your ways and shared Your Word as we should have.  We don't take the things like the life of others, or marriage relationships seriously.  We claim to be Yours and yet deny You with our actions.

Self focus is so prevalent that we forget your wisdom, we act to place ourselves ahead or above others and thus beyond any possible consequences, and yet we are not set apart other than in our twisted thoughts that cater to self.

Show us Your ways, they have never been so available and yet they have never been so rejected.

The heart of each of us is desperately wicked, only when we submit our hearts to You is their goodness.

How long oh Lord, How long?